Pretend Boyfriend
by Alleybat
Summary: Dick usually hates Wayne charity events... Just a bunch of rich snobs flaunting their money around. Maybe this one will be different though... I allude to my fic "A Bit of the Flu" in this one, so if you're confused as to who Lily is, go check it out!


The sound of murmuring voices and clinking crystal-ware filled the air. The Wayne foundation was hosting another event in Wayne manor, and try as he might, Dick couldn't escape this one. It's not that he didn't care for the charities that were being represented, he just didn't like the people who contributed. Really, the only reason any of them were here was for the tax write off donating large sums of money would net them. Sure, there were the few who actually did care, but they were leading the event, talking to Bruce and amongst themselves, they weren't interested in entertaining him. So, it was Dick's duty to stay away from them and mingle in the crowd. Nights like tonight made him feel like he was a walking meat shield for Bruce, since, so long as he was out meandering in the crowd, most of the guests would talk to him about Bruce's recent escapades and skip Bruce entirely. Dick began to wonder why a bunch of adults would talk to a thirteen year-old about the kind of things Bruce reportedly does, but he reminded himself of where he was... gossip central for the rich and famous. He should be thankful that he didn't have any nasty rumours going around about him. Although, with this crowd, it was only a matter of time.

"_I would much rather be out as Robin right now..." _Dick thought to himself smiling at the millionth person who spotted him in the crowd. Thank God they were already talking and ignored him past the small greeting. _"Or, I could be online gaming with Wally... anything but all this..."_

It was then that he saw the flash of red hair rush up to him.

"Babs!" Dick said excitedly. "I hoped you were here! I mean I saw your dad and-"

"No time for chatting Dick, c'mere!" She said hurriedly, grabbing his arm and dragging him through the crowd.

They bumped into startled party goers, nearly causing one woman to spill her champagne over a prominent businessman. The two of them shot Dick and Babs a look and Dick tried to apologise, but Babs kept pulling him along.

"Here he is girls..." Babs said when they came to a stop. Dick stopped focusing on the angry patrons for a moment to see where exactly Babs had brought him.

They were in a quieter section of the party, where more people their age hung out. Babs had probably been here all night, talking to these girls. Dick was still confused as to why though.

"Babs what're you?" He started to ask.

"_He's_ your boyfriend?" the taller, blonde haired girl said with a sneer. "You really expect us to believe that you're dating Dick Grayson?"

The reality of what Babs had been doing all night set in. She must've been talking to these girls and when the subject of boyfriends came up, she panicked and grabbed him from the crowd. Normally, Dick wouldn't go along with this kind of plan. But, he knew how people were at these parties. It would humiliate Babs for him to deny he was her boyfriend after she went this far into the lie. She was his best friend, the least he could do was to pretend, at least for the night, that he was her boyfriend... it's not like he hated the idea anyway.

"That's right... I am" Dick said, before Babs could. She shot him a look out of the corner of her eye, like she wasn't sure if he was going to help her, or troll her, but she didn't say anything.

"Oh yeah?" The shorter blonde said. "If you two are dating... Why haven't you been together all night? They even had a couple's dance a little bit ago... Where were you?"

"I'm kind of a host of this party," Dick said, thinking on his toes. "I have to mingle amongst the crowd... Babs understands... Don't you Babs?"

"Y-yeah, I do" Babs said.

"Uh huh," The tall blonde said. "How long have you two been dating then?"

"A month." Babs said. Dick didn't argue the point, they needed to be together on this or else these girls were going to catch them in their lie... But, a month seemed like an awful long time for them to have hidden the fact that they were dating. The questions kept coming, but some were easier than others... How long have you known each other? How did you two meet? They definitely didn't have to lie there. And Dick was really enjoying being Babs' boyfriend, at least for the night. That was, until the questions got more personal...

"So, Barbara..." The brunette chimed in. "When did you first realize you had romantic feelings for Dick?"

This was beginning to get out of hand... They could pretend to be going out all they wanted, but to ask Barbara about her romantic feelings, when she had none, was taking it a little far. Dick opened his mouth to say something, but Barbara cut him off...

"Just a little bit before we started dating..." Babs said, not looking at him. "He brought me to see this little girl who he'd helped during that attack we had..."

"_Lily..."_ Dick thought, he'd gone to check on her nearly everyday since the crisis that took her mother, and nearly killed her. It turns out her Dad was on business and was devastated to hear of his wife's death. Dick had taken Babs to see her, telling her to pretend that he was Robin, she went along with it...

"He was just... so great with her... Tender, understanding..." She trailed off for a moment. "I guess, I wasn't used to seeing him in that light and, I dunno... I fell for him... pretty hard."

Dick was taken by surprise. They were still pretending right? That sounded like an honest to goodness answer to him. He felt himself go red around the ears. The girls seemed to be taken aback as well, they didn't expect such an earnest answer from her. For a moment, Dick thought they had exhausted all of their questions, but the red-headed girl, who hadn't said anything at all by this point, piped up with a question of her own.

"When did you guys have your first kiss?"

This one was new. They could answer the other questions because, for the most part, they were actually true... Dick racked his brain for an answer... When was it appropriate to kiss in the dating world? First date? Second? Is there some kind of sign that tells you when? But, their relationship was fake... when would it have been hypothetically appropriate for them to kiss?

Babs wasn't doing any better than him. The two of them sat in silence for a moment, until the short blonde interjected...

"You two haven't even kissed yet? You've been dating a month... What's the holdup?"

Dick swallowed a lump in his throat. He knew his entire face was red at this point. He didn't dare look at Babs. They had really worked themselves into a corner with this one...

"Kiss..." The brunette said... "Do it, right here, right now."

Dick looked from the group of girls, now completely fixated on the two of them, to Babs. She was bright red, her face almost blended in with her hair. She wasn't looking at him, like she realized they had caught their lie, and it was time to give it up. But, Dick knew what these kind of girls would do if they exposed their lie... Babs wouldn't hear the end of it for a long time. The rich loved their gossip, and something like this would be too juicy to let go.

Dick swallowed another lump and grabbed Babs by the shoulders. She jumped a little when he touched her, but she didn't protest. He looked into her blue eyes, and tried to silently apologise for what he was about to do. This was all to keep her out of the gossip circle. He felt his face grow hotter as he leaned into her. For a moment he expected her to back up and expose their ruse, but she actually met him halfway. Their lips locked, and a sensation overcame Dick. He wasn't sure what exactly it was but it started in the pit of his stomach and spread all through his body. He almost forgot where they were for a moment, he just didn't want the feeling to end. He pulled away and felt Babs lean forward towards his departing lips, before she pulled back herself. She looked at him, even redder than before, and mumbled something incoherently before rushing off for one of the balconies.

The four girls, their audience through the entire kiss, stood there with their mouths open. Dick stood rooted to his spot for a moment until one of them gestured for him to follow her. He obliged, not daring to look back to see them start their inevitable gossip. He worked his way through the small crowd that stood between him and the doors to the balcony. Babs was leaning on the railing, overlooking the golf course on the outskirts of the manor. He approached her, unsure of what to say.

"Babs..." He started.

She was crying... He was such an idiot. Why did he kiss her? She probably hated him now.

"I'm so sorry, Babs!" He almost shouted. "I just, we were so caught up in that lie... and..."

"T-that's not why I'm upset Dick.." she said wiping the tears from her eyes. "I'm upset... Because... it was a lie."

He was confused... of course it was a lie... the whole thing. Their whole relationship was made up on the spot. Of course, the kiss, that was different... there was nothing made up about that feeling he got when he kissed her. Maybe, that's what she meant.

"Are you... talking about the kiss?" He asked.

"Yes I'm talking about the kiss!" She yelled. "I... I forced you into that situation... where you were put on the spot in the first place... and you were really nice not to expose me right there..."

"I know how these people can be..." Dick said softly. "I didn't want you to be humiliated..."

"I know!" She said crying more now. "And that's why it hurts so much that... that... you had to kiss me like that."

"I didn't know you were so opposed to kissing me Babs..." Dick said, trying to hide the disappointment in his voice.

"That's not it at all!" She said, diving into hysterics. "I... I've wanted to kiss you like that for a long time Dick... ever since we visited Lily in the hospital and I realized that... well that I like you... That I wished we could be more than just friends! B-but... those stupid girls, had to force you to kiss me... and..."

"Wait..." Dick said, cutting her off. "What you said, about falling for me... that was true?"

She sniffled, tuned red, and looked away from him. Was it really true?

"Babs..." he said as softly as he could.

"It's just... if you were gonna kiss me..." she said. "I want you to kiss me because you want to, not because you're forced to..."

He couldn't stand to see her cry. Coupled with her recent confession, it was more than he could bear. He put his hands on her cheeks and tilted her face to look at him. Tears were still flowing from her eyes, and her carefully done makeup was beginning to run down her cheeks. The feeling he'd felt when he kissed her began to rise in his stomach again and he was overcome with a slew of emotions. Before he could stop himself he brought his face into hers, kissing her again. This time, the feeling exploded in him, resonating through his entire body. He kissed her deeper, his hands still fixated on her cheeks. He felt her lips part, and took it a step further, she tasted like the various orderves they had been served through the night. They continued on, until her tears completely dried. Then, he reluctantly pulled away to make sure she was okay.

"Y-you..." She started.

"I did that..." he said. "Because I wanted to. Not because someone made me, or I felt I had to..."


End file.
